Asymmetry

Library Street Collective | Detroit, Michigan

Asymmetry is a two-person exhibition featuring the work of Robert Moreland and Jacqueline Surdell. Asymmetry creates a striking synergy between two new bodies of work that, while visually distinct, connect through universally complementary principles.

Los Angeles–based artist Robert Moreland meticulously develops his work with a precision that reflects his pursuit of simplicity in both art and life. Continuing in his signature style, Moreland’s new body of work explores the interplay between shape, color, and form, eschewing the need for speculative interpretation. Each piece is hand-constructed: canvases are stretched over wood, joined with leather hinges and metal tacks, then built up through multiple layers of paint. The visual restraint and formal clarity of his sculptures belie the demanding process behind them, days of concentrated labor that remain concealed within the finished work. This hidden effort lends the pieces an industrial sensibility and an element of mystery within their multi-paneled, two-toned compositions.

Similarly, Jacqueline Surdell, a Chicago native, creates equally labor-intensive textile sculptures. While also employing repetition, color, and shape as foundational elements, Surdell questions what can emerge when formal concerns become the driving force of creation. Her practice is rooted in an interest in sacred spaces; she draws connections between the architecture of bathhouses and galleries, both structured through grids that parallel the weaving of cloth. Although she disrupts traditional linear networks, Surdell’s work remains grounded in established textile techniques, folding complexity into itself through physical manipulation. Viewed as a whole, her sculptures form dynamic amalgamations of color and line that connect and disconnect in a meditative rhythm.

Ultimately, Asymmetry stages a dialogue between the simplicity of Moreland’s works and the complexity of Surdell’s. Their use of color and dimensionality contrasts with the stark white gallery walls, adding physical depth to the space and engaging in a nuanced conceptual exchange. Though the connection may not be overtly displayed, both artists are united by the continuity of manual labor embedded in their processes. The visual dichotomy of their work is counterbalanced by a shared rigor, both formal and physical, that defines the exhibition’s core.